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Description

Computers and the Cybernetic Society, Second Edition examines the impact of computers on the cybernetic society and covers topics such as expert systems, management applications, and office automation. The idea of a computer program is considered, along with data banks and the movement and storage of information. Advances in computer technology are also discussed.

Comprised of nine chapters, this book begins with an assessment of the interaction between computer developments and social pressures. The interplay between the exciting possibilities of computer networking and the social implications of computer technology is highlighted by focusing on planning networks and public information networks. The next two chapters provide a basic understanding of computers and programming by describing key concepts such as computer graphics, networks, microcomputers, and program design. The next five chapters give a comprehensive overview of the impact of computers on the cybernetic society. The final chapter explains how hardware works and describes the circuitry that computers use to execute a program at the level of machine-language instructions.

This monograph is intended for both students and instructors in the fields of computer science and cybernetics.

Table of Contents

1 Social Issues in the Cybernetic Society
Introduction
The Computer Revolution
The Design of Social Systems in a Free Society
Networks in National and International Politics
Public-Information Networks
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
2 About Computers and Programs
2.1 The Idea of a Program
Programming a Simple Robot
Programs in Perspective
A Digital Wristwatch
Bugs and Learning
A Walk through the Computer Center
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
2.2 Moving and Storing Information
The Shape of a Computer System
Coding
Payroll Job
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
2.3 Translators, Operating Systems, and Time-Sharing
Translators
Operating Systems
Time-Sharing
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
3 Advances in Computer Technology
3.1 Graphics and Networks
Computer Graphics
The Squiral Nebula
Computer Networks
Computer Conferencing
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
3.2 The Shrinking Machine and Personal Computers
Hardware Trends and Microcomputers
New Uses for Microcomputers
The Shrinking Machine
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
3.3 Writing and Rewriting Large Programs
Large Programs
Top-Down Design
Programming Teams
Program Validation
Rewriting
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
4 The Rise of the Data Bank
4.1 Data-Base Management
A Data Base for Airline Reservations
The Problem of Security
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
4.2 Computers, Cash, and Crime
The Checkless Society
A Sampler of Computer Crimes
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
4.3 Data Banks and Privacy
The Need to Control Data Banks
The Privacy Act of 1974
Implications and Developments
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
5 Artificial and Natural Intelligence
5.1 Brains, Minds, and Computers
An Overview of the Brain
Cooperative Computation
Control of Movement
Sight
Brain Technology
Mind and Mechanism
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
5.2 Robotics and Planning
Scene Analysis
Planning
Recursion
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
5.3 Natural Language Understanding and Expert Systems
Syntax and Semantics
Talking about the Blocks World
Speech Understanding
Expert Systems
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
6 Simulating Complex systems
6.1 The Idea of Simulation
The State of a System
Negative Feedback
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
6.2 Prey and Predators
Isolated Species
Putting the Species Together
Solving the Problem
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
6.3 Management Simulation
Fundamentals of Systems Dynamics
The Compound-Interest Model
The Inventory Management Model
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
6.4 World Simulation
Garbage In/Garbage Out
The Limits to Growth
A Regional Approach to Global Planning
The Danger of Despair
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
7 Learning and Working
7.1 Computers in Education
Drill and Practice CAI
Tutorial CAI
Dialog-Inquiry CAI
The Computer as an Aid to Discovery
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
7.2 Information Flow in the Cybernetic Society
Making the News Responsive
Computers and Communication
The Computerized Library
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
7.3 Automation in Industry and the Office
The Industrial Revolution
From Assembly Line to Automation
Automation and the Unions
Cars and Computers
Office Automation
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
8 Networks and Politics
8.1 Networks for Planning
The Idea of a Planning Network
Networks for Local Planning
Networks for Distributed Planning
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
8.2 Democracy in the Computer Age
What Is Democracy?
Decisions Take Time and Knowledge
Information Networks
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
8.3 Computers in War and Peace
Guided Missiles
Sensor Arrays
Some Moral Issues
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
8.4 A Brain for Planet Earth
Grand Aims and Realistic Subgoals
The Diversity of Nation-States
From Regional Simulations to Global Networks
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
9 Down and Up from Machine Language
9.1 How Hardware Works
Instructions and Data in Memory
An Instruction Set
Getting Information in and out of Memory
How the Computer Follows a Program
The FETCH Cycle for (109) = ADD 37
The EXECUTE Cycle for ADD 37
The FETCH Cycle for (110) = JMP 114
The EXECUTE Cycle for JMP 114
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
9.2 Programming and Compiling
Adding 100 Numbers
Compiling
Summary
Glossary Words
Exercises
Suggestions for Further Reading
Glossary
Name Index
Subject Index

About the Author

Michael A. Arbib

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